Binod Kumar Versus State of Jharkhand & Others- In the impugned judgment, it is mentioned that the basic allegation is amassing of illicit wealth by various former Ministers, including a former Chief Minister of the State. The money alleged to have been so earned is of unprecedented amounts. However, there is no clear allegation so far about its laundering in the sense mentioned above, but there is an allegation of its investment in property, shares etc. not only in India but also abroad.

Foreign investment in India rose by USD 22.7 billion in the quarter ending December 2010 to USD 628 billion, mainly on account of increase in portfolio investment and FDI. Total foreign fund inflows, including FDI, portfolio investment and external commercial borrowings (ECB), rose to USD 628.6 billion on December 31 from 605.9 billion during the end of September, according to RBI data.

Pricing of Convertible instruments. Issue of Shares permitted against specified non-cash considerations under Approval Route. Approval / conditionalities surrounding previous joint venture/collaborations done away with. Guidelines relating to Down-Stream investments. Sector Specific policy for FDI- Agriculture. The revised FDI policy does carry the process of liberalization further and would assist in augmenting FDI into the Country. However, the revised FDI policy has kept at bay significantly expected changes such as permitting FDI in Limited Liability Partnership, Multi-Brand Retail Trading and several other subjects on which draft discussion papers were released earlier for public comments. It is important that these areas are also taken up the Government for liberalisation towards making India one of the most favourable FDI destinations in the world.

The government has called a Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) meeting on April 20, the first one after it announced major changes in FDI norms, to approve proposals for foreign direct investment. While the agenda of the 165th FIPB meeting was being finalised, sources said the Board may also consider those cases on which decisions were deferred in the past.

NOTIFICATION NO. DNBS. 228/CGM(US)-2011, DATED 30-3-2011- Insertion of new paragraph 20A– After paragraph 20 of the said Directions, the following paragraph 20A shall be inserted. “NBFCs not to be partners in partnership firms” 20A. (1) No non-banking financial company shall contribute to the capital of a partnership firm or become a partner of such firm. (2) A non-banking financial company, which had already contributed to the capital of a partnership firm or was a partner of a partnership firm shall seek early retirement from the partnership firm.

“ICICI is an Indian bank, but it is over 50 per cent (equity) foreign owned, it is owned by foreigners in that sense…for downstream investment it is a foreign company…,” Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) Secretary R P Singh told reporters here.The government today said that ICICI Bank and other lenders whose more than 50 per cent equity is owned by overseas entities will be treated as a foreign company for the purpose of computing FDI.

FEMA : Export of Goods and Software – Realisation and Repatriation of export proceeds – Liberalisation. A.P. (DIR SERIES) CIRCULAR NO. 47, DATED 31-3-2011. Attention of Authorised Dealer Category-I (AD Category-I) banks is invited to A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 57, dated June 29, 2010 enhancing the period of realization and repatriation to India of the amount representing the full export value of goods or software exported, from six months to twelve months from the date of export. This relaxation was up to March 31, 2011.

India Thursday announced an updated foreign direct investment (FDI) policy that simplifies joint venture norms and opens up new areas for overseas funds. The updated policy allows overseas firms in existing joint ventures to operate separately in the same business segment. Earlier, they needed prior approval from their Indian partners. ” FDI policy is part of ongoing efforts of procedure simplification and foreign direct investment rationalisation, which will go a long way in inspiring investor confidence,” Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said in a statement.

Investment in infrastructure holds the key to India’s economic growth. It has been projected that India’s investment requirement in the 12th Five Year Plan is over a trillion USD of which half is expected to come from the private sector. To encourage greater private sector participation in the development of infrastructure in the country, the Union Finance Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee during his budget speech of 2011-12 announced the decision of the government to further liberalise the policy relating to the investment in corporate bond market.

Circular 1 of 2011 on FDI- (i) Pricing of Convertible instruments. (ii) Inclusion of fresh items for issue of shares against non-cash considerations (iii) Removal of the condition of prior approval in case of existing joint ventures/ technical collaborations in the ‘same field” (iv) Guidelines relating to down-stream investments (v) Development of Seeds